Animal Study Indicates Selenium Reduces Prostate Damage

Animal Study Indicates Selenium Reduces Prostate Damage

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind.--Researchers at PurdueUniversity concluded from their animal research that dietary seleniumsupplementation protects against prostate cancer, as noted in the Feb. 5 issueof the Journal of the National Cancer Institute (95, 3:237-41, 2003) (http://jncicancerspectrum.oupjournals.org).They fed elderly male beagles a control diet or a diet enriched with one of twokinds of selenium--selenomethionine or high-selenium yeast--for seven months.The extent of DNA damage in prostate cells and peripheral blood lymphocytes waslower in the selenium-supplemented dogs than the control dogs. Researchersconcluded these data suggest dietary selenium supplementation decreased DNAdamage and increased epithelial cell apoptosis within the aging canine prostate.